How Clean Is Your Hotel Bed?

Mom was right when she said “never walk barefoot in a hotel room.” It turns out some hotels do a very bad job when it comes to how they clean your room.

A team from ABC News went to 20 well-known hotels in New York, Miami, Houston and Los Angeles to find out just how clean the rooms really are. Armed with a black light, they searched for evidence.

“Inside a $300-a-night room at one of New York’s finest hotels, there was dried semen on the bedspread and urine stains on the bedroom walls.

At another four-star resort, the black light illuminated traces of urine on the walls, the bedspread, chairs, a bathroom vanity stool and on the carpet right where people step into bed.”

From a one-star hotel room priced at $55 a night to a five-star room hotel room renting for $400 a night, the lab results showed traces of urine or semen in every room tested.

6 Tips for a cleaner hotel room experience

So now that you’re totally grossed out, here are some ways you can improve the cleaniness of your hotel room:

1. Remove the hotel bedspread. Tests showed this to be the most germ-laden thing in the whole room.
2. Travel with sanitizing wipes. Wipe things that people touch a lot, such as the phone and TV remote control.
3. Wash your hands.
4. Look for rust-colored stains on sheets and bedspreads. It can be a sign that bedbugs are present.
Make friends with the maid and show her your appreciation daily.
5. And remember Mom’s advice, never walk barefoot in a hotel room.

Update: Travelodge employees a professional bed tester.  He tests hotel room mattresses, pillows, room lighting, and sound proofing. The question is, does he have a black light?

Related Categories: Miami: Travel News, Gus Moore heads up Miami Beach 411 as site administrator. You can reach him at 1-305-754-2206. See more articles by Gus. See more articles by Gus Was This Post Helpful? Please Share It With Others! Tweet

Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.

Discuss the surrounding area in our hugely popular Miami forum.